Steve Hackett

Steve Hackett's autobiography is almost the dictionary definition of a Curate's Egg.

He has always come across as a kind and likeable chap and the book reinforces this. However, for a short book, there is an over emphasis on his early years which bizarrely get almost the same amount of coverage as his time in Genesis.

He is clearly well read and provides lots of detailed descriptions of his thought processes and motivations which provide quite a bit of new insight. These contrast with a show more cursory treatment of what must have been darker times such as leaving Genesis, the influence and subsequent divorce from Kim Poor and the inevitable difficulty ploughing the unfashionable prog rock furrow during the nineties.

He gets huge credit in my eyes for the most cogent explanation as to why Punk made life difficult for many musicians...clue it was zero to do with the music and everything to do with marketing and the music press.

Latterly, his relationship with Jo and creating a niche combining the best of his solo work with revisiting Genesis classics gives the impression of a contented musician living his best life. That makes me very happy. show less

This book is not for everyone. If you’re not a fan of the art of Hackett and/or the early era Genesis chances are good that you’ll be very bored reading this not really long but interesting autobiography.